Gifts

Stylish Christmas Neighbor Gifts + Free Printable Gift Tags

2 · Dec 1, 2015 · 1 Comment

+ This Stylish Christmas Neighbor Gifts post is brought to you by Michaels +

One of my favorite things to do is creating fun new little ways to show your friends and neighbors how much they mean to you during the holidays. It doesn’t need to cost a lot, nor does it have to take a whole lot of time & effort.

This month my Michaels Makers Challenge was to create three different, simple gifts that would be perfect for friends, neighbors, teachers, the mail man, the bus driver, your hair stylist… Basically anyone. Challenge accepted!

I went to Michaels and found some fun mugs and cute cups to create some easy, fun gifts. Then I created some stylish tags to add to the mugs and cups.

You can download the free printable gift tags HERE

You can print them on white label paper or you can print them on Printable Gold Foil from Silhouette (I love this stuff!) You can find it at Michaels too. All you need to do is download the PDF file and print out your labels…

I’m cutting these out with just a simple pair of scissors, no cutting machine required.

Now, I know that a lot of people love their sweets when it comes to Christmas, but not everyone appreciates ALL of those sweets. I thought I would come up with a non-sweet gift that will still be a fun gift to receive.

Everyone’s in love with the Buffalo Check this year and Michaels is right on trend with these fun cups. They even have some awesome Buffalo Check socks in the dollar section… PERFECT! I placed some matching socks into the cute cups and added the “Merry Cozy Christmas” Label on the front of the cup… 1st gift finished! Can’t get any easier than that!

Next up, the classic hot cocoa mug with a cute little twist.

I filled a large cone shaped cellophane bag with some hot chocolate mix and tied it with some buffalo check ribbon. I put it into a large buffalo check mug and then I added a cool battery powered set of star lights to the mug to add a little whimsical element. I love how it turned out… 2nd gift complete!

Last but not least I found another mug at Michaels that’s a great plaid mug. I noticed some Lindor Truffles up at the front of the store that matched the plaid pattern on the mug. I thought it would be a PERFECT pairing with the plaid mug.

Adding the gold foil gift tag just makes it look so classy!

3rd gift down and it didn’t take any time at all. All three are great, stylish gifts that anyone would love!

Michaels has tons of holiday project ideas and instructions on Michaels.com, including gift wrapping, home décor, last minute gift ideas, hostess gifts and more. Don’t forget The Glue String, Michaels blog full of even more great ideas for the season.

Circle – The One Gift EVERY Family NEEDS

1 · Nov 30, 2015 · 1 Comment

I’m so excited to FINALLY reveal what I wanted to shout from the rooftops! Check out Circle with Disney, the only gift I can basically guarantee won’t give you buyer’s remorse. Yes, it’s that cool.

Raising a family in the digital age is SCARY! As our family gets older and the kiddos are more and more computer savvy, My husband and I have been scratching our heads trying to figure out how to handle this challenge in our home. How to keep the crud out of our home and how to keep all of these devices from taking over our family. It’s a tough balancing act. I’m thrilled to finally have a solution to so many of these troublesome issues…

Every family needs this in their home.

Don’t believe me? Watch this video clip and you’ll be sold too.

Best part…

It’s on sale today!

$85.00! (regularly $99)

Are you tired of letting the Internet dictate what your family is exposed to? Not Anymore! With Circle, YOU are the boss!

4 Awesome things you can EASILY do with Circle:

Set appropriate filters for EACH DEVICE.

Use the pre-designed ones or customize your own.

Track where your family is spending their time online.

Give your devices a BED TIME!

PAUSE the internet! Yes. you. can.

If you are still not convinced, read what these Circle customers are saying about it:

“As the father of four kids from elementary through college age, I am not exaggerating when I say Circle is EXACTLY the device I have been looking for to control the internet in my house. Circle truly is peace of mind in a little white box.” – Wayne Stocks

“Circle has literally changed our lives and how our family spends time on the internet. My worries of what my children could be exposed to online has changed overnight by the use of Circle. I can pause the internet anytime making getting chores or homework done much easier these days.” -Terra Nyce

“Circle makes it easy for me to protect my kids online, monitor usage across all our home’s devices, and create conversations with the entire family. It’s rare that something is simple and effective, but Circle is both.” — Michael Lukaszewski

Get control of the Internet and give your family this gift.

Click HERE to take advantage of this amazing offer on Circle

+ Disclaimer – This is not a sponsored post however I am a member of the Circle Affiliate Program +

Better Than Sex Chex Mix Neighbor Gift

1 · Nov 16, 2015 · 1 Comment

+ This Chex Mix Neighbor Gift is brought to you by Chex™ +

Oh it’s that time of the year again! One of my favorites for sure. I LOVE creating fun new ideas for neighbor gifts.

There is just something magical about getting together with your kiddos and putting together some gifts to give to those you love. They don’t need to be expensive or time consuming at all. It’s really a chance to take something simple to a friend, neighbor or even Bob (the mail man) to let them know that you care. To let them know that you notice all of the little things they do day-in and day-out to make your life a little better.

My first offering for this year is a sinfully scrumptious treat…

BETTER THAN SEX CHEX MIX!!

Yea, I didn’t come-up with the name or the recipe, this amazing concoction is directly from the folks at Chex! That means it going to be fantastic.

Look at that crazy pile of yumminess!

It’s super simple to make and it’s packed full of all the goodies that everyone loves… caramel, brown sugar, chocolate, butter, Chex cereal, mini-marshmallows, mini-Reese’s cups. Yea, it’s kinda amazing, here’s a link to the RECIPE.

Now, once you have it all mixed up and ready to give to your friends and neighbors and Bob (the mail man), it’s time to package the goodies up. I’m going to share THREE easy ways to share this amazing treat.

First, I found a nice basket at Target, but I’m sure we all have some type of basket laying around that would work. I lined the basket with parchment paper and then filled it with the Better Than Sex Chex Mix. To decorate the basket, I used a metal Christmas ornament that I found at Rod Works. The ornament made the perfect decor for the basket. It has a metal hanger that I folded over the top of the basket and it secured it nicely in place. My lucky friends will not only receive and yummy treat, they will receive a cute basket and a Christmas ornament as well. Triple win!

Next idea, I filled a large half-gallon Ball Jar with our sinful concoction and then tied a bow (ribbon is from Michaels) around the middle for a simple yet scrumptious gift.

Want to make it even easier? Grab a large cellophane bag from Michaels and fill your bag with the Chex Mix and and tie it off with a bow and bam, your done! It couldn’t be any easier!

There you have it… One amazing Chex Mix recipe that your friends will be raving about, packaged three different ways. Time to add some Chex Cereal to your shopping list and start making some Holiday goodies. Visit Chex.com for even more fantastic Chex Mix ideas perfect for Holiday gift giving.

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of ChexTM. The opinions and text are all mine.

English Toffee Cinnamon Bun Sweet Cake + Easy Neighbor Gift

18 · Dec 17, 2014 · 3 Comments

+ English Toffee Cinnamon Bun Sweet Cake post brought to you by Pillsbury Baking +

We’re hitting crunch time friends! Christmas is about a week away. Have you figured out what you are giving your neighbors and friends this Christmas season? I have a super easy and super sweet gift idea for you… English Toffee Cinnamon Bun Sweet Cakes!

Uh yes… YUM!!

This is just a simple and scrumptious box cake mix and prepared frosting from my favorite folks at Pillsbury Baking. They have done all the hard work of making it perfect… All you have to do is bake it and make it look amazing!

Here is what you need…

Yep, that’s it. Well… You will need eggs and oil for the cake, but other than that, this is it.

I also found these great baking cups at Target that come with a clear lid. Super Cute and easy to use. You can find it in the baking section at Target.

Mix up your cake according to the package directions and fill you baking cups 1/2 way.

Place in a 350˚ oven for 19-20 minutes.

Remove from oven and let cool. If you would like a flat top to decorate, carefully cut-off the dome with a serrated knife.

Using a Jumbo Closed Star Decorating Tip, and a pastry bag… Pipe some simple stars on the top of your little sweet cakes.

Next, in a Ziplock bag, add some English Toffee. Using something heavy item like a rolling pin or meat tenderizer, take out some aggression and crush your toffee. Sprinkle on top of the sweet cakes and you’re finished!

All you need to do now is package your sweet treats.

I place the lid on the sweet cakes and then wrap with a ribbon. Then I add a fun gift tag that I created for this Holiday Season.

You can download the gift tag HERE

I’ve printed the tag on kraft paper, but you can use whatever you like. All I did was tie it onto a stack of sweet cakes and we were ready for delivery!

It can’t get any easier than that. The cool thing is you can customize it for each family.

One box of cake mix will make 10 little sweet cakes. You will need two cans of frosting for that application. Stack them in 2’s and 3’s and it’s a fun new way to share some Christmas Cheer!

For a Savory gift tag option… Check-out this post.

How fun will it be to combine the two?!

Disclaimer // This post is sponsored by Pillsbury Baking. All thoughts, ideas and opinions are my very own. However, I want you all to know that I will never promote a product or company that I do not love and use in my normal day to day life.